Academic Freedom in Türkiye
By: Eugenio Truffa
May 13, 2025
The independence of academia in Türkiye is in steep decline under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. This week’s graph shows the large losses on five indicators in the academic freedom index in the past 15 years. The variables range from 0 (not free) to 4 (fully free).
Türkiye’s recent political history has been marked by volatility and autocratization. Democracy broke down and Türkiye turned into an electoral autocracy in 2013 after the harsh crackdown on the Gezi Park protests. However, it is especially after the 2016 coup attempt that academic freedom declines rapidly. In response to the coup, Erdogan declared a state of emergency and started a full-scale purge of teachers, professors, and other civil servants.
On March 18 this year, Istanbul University invalidated the diploma of Ekrem Imamoglu, Mayor of Istanbul and main opposition to Erdogan. This politically motivated move demonstrates the lack of institutional autonomy of academia and prevents Imamoglu from running in the 2028 presidential elections – in Türkiye, presidential candidates must have a higher education degree.
